The Little Nocturne
by Lady Wonderful
Summary: The Little Mermaid meets Kingdom Hearts! Demyx has always been obsessed with the human world, but when he rescues prince Zexion from drowning, how far will his fascination take him? To the extent of becoming human, perhaps? AU Zemyx
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters except the idiotic sealife that happen to appear in this story. x3 (Gets sued anyway.)

Thee story is based on Disney's 'The Little Mermaid'. Therfore, I cannot take full credit for it all. I'm doing this from memory though, so I'm not doing it absolute word-perfect. This might have been done before, but I haven't seen it. So there. xP Now let's get started with the kawaiiness! :D

* * *

"Where on Earth is Demyx?" King Xemnas questioned angrily, golden tail cutting the water with furious jerking movements. "That little fool is going to miss the concert!"

Roxas flinched in reply. Father was so harsh when it came to his older brother.

"Maybe he's just nervous about the show?" Namine suggested quietly. "And he's busy practising in his room?"

Xemnas shot his youngest daughter a scathing look, but all the same he turned to Dawn (A silver fish that had proved to be one of his most faithful assistants) and hissed, "Go check his room."

"Right away, sir!" Dawn exclaimed, and sped off obediently.

"He had better be on time," the king continued, yellow eyes flashing with irritation. "Otherwise he'll have utter hell to pay." And with that, he left his two children so that he could go sulk in his quarters.

Namine widened her eyes at her brother, concern gleaming almost painfully obvious in her expression. "He will come back, won't he?"

"Of course he's coming back!" Roxas retorted, voice thick. "He's just gone for a swim, like the absolute idiot he is, and he's probably got himself lost. Dad's gonna kill him if he doesn't get back though…"

Namine yelped.

"Not literally!"

* * *

Demyx squinted down into the depths of the unusually murky water. It was too dirty to be able to actually see anything… he sighed with utter disappointment. Previously that day he had heard two other mermaids gossip about the sunken ship they had spotted a few days ago, and so, forgetting any prior commitments he had made in his excitement, Demyx had swam off instantly to see for himself.

He waved an arm furiously, trying to shift some of the dirt and dust from his line of vision, but to no avail. If he wanted to see what was down there, he would actually have to dive straight down and give it a thorough inspection. Normally he'd have no problem with having a little look-around, but… these were unfamiliar waters, and it was really filthy around here, and there might be _ghosts._ Not to mention, he had to get to the concert.

"Oh damn! The _concert_!" Demyx smacked his forehead in realisation. "I totally spaced! Oh, dad's gonna kill me…"

He was about to turn tail and swim at full-speed back to the palace, when (of course) a flash of silver from the depths below caught his eye. He stopped dead, caught in a moral dilemma. On one hand, he could go back to the palace, arrive on time and not get killed. On the other, he could go and pick up whatever that shiny object happened to be and then swim like hell, and maybe, just maybe, arrive late. If he didn't get it now, he might never be able to find it again. That was all the rationalisation he needed, and so he dived straight down into the muddy unknown, the dirt pricking his delicate green eyes, foreign aggressive seaweed wrapping tight around his arms and tail. It was against his nature to fearlessly brave such terrible waters, as Demyx was someone who preferred not to engage in anything unnecessarily unpleasant if he could help it. He could help it. But when it came to anything remotely connected to the human world, a driving obsession that lurked deep inside of him sprung forth, holding reign over his entire body, blocking out all those negative thoughts about the danger or trouble he was getting himself into.

Demyx was close now, the silver whatever-it-was only a half-metre from his face. His eyes glittered excitedly as he tail kicked just that little bit further, his hand already outstretched to claim his prize…

There was an almost deafening crack as millions and billions of teeth mashed together just mere nanometres from the mermaid's confident hand. The shark was stationary for a moment, contemplating why it couldn't taste its late afternoon snack. By the time it had dawned on it that it might have missed its target, Demyx should have covered quite a distance between them. Emphasis on the word SHOULD. At this particular moment in time, the mermaid had been in such a state of pure shock that all he could bring himself to do was to gawp at the massive fish in utter horror.

He probably would have stayed that way for a while, perhaps stuck in the shark's stomach, staring into space (after the beast had swallowed him whole), had it not been for a responsible, older brother of Demyx's to materialise behind the shark and grab its tail. Distracted, the fish turned around, only to be knocked into a daze by a second brother (who had had a lot of experience at fighting dangerous beasts, if the scar on his face was any explanation) punched it incredibly hard on the nose.

"Come on Demyx," Cloud yelled desperately, grabbing his younger brother's arm. The musician instinctively yanked the silver object from the tangle of seaweed as he was pulled away from the murky, unfamiliar waters, Seifer close behind.

Once a sufficient amount of space had been covered and the eldest brother was convinced they were free of any spontaneous shark-attacks, the three grinded to a halt.

"What the fck were you thinking?" Seifer exploded, smacking the back of Demyx's head with his hand, causing the youngest brother to moan in pain. "You could have got fcking killed!" Cloud didn't say anything, but the frown of deep disappointment was even more agonising than Seifer's verbal and physical abuse put together.

"I'm… I'm sorry…" Demyx said quietly, dipping his head in remorse.

"Demyx," Cloud grabbed at his shoulders, eyes boring into his fiercely. "You can't just go swimming off all by yourself, ESPECIALLY to uncharted waters where Poseidon knows what things are lurking there. And how could you just swim off when there's a concert planned for today? You know fine well that father will absolutely kill you if don't turn up on time!"

Seifer rolled his eyes, "Speaking of which, we're gonna be late if we don't get a move on."

"Fine," Cloud removed his hands from the youngest shoulders and sighed. "Don't think you're getting away with this, Demyx. The concert is too important right now though… so we'd better get going."

Reviews, please? :D


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Characters owned by Kingdom Hearts. Story based on the Little Mermaid.

* * *

With the concert mere seconds away from commencing, Xemnas barely had time to open his mouth to scream at his son before Demyx was pushed into the back room to get ready. Never mind, he could lecture him later. Roxas and Namine shared identical looks of relief, although if the grim frown on Cloud's face was anything to go by, they doubted that their older brother would get off lightly.

The Atlantica Musical Hall was jam-packed with thousands of excited fish, all colours of the rainbow shimmering as they intermingled in the stands. Even dolphins were circling the auditorium, creaking in approval at how fabulous the stage looked. The glow fish surrounding the frame began to dim, and as the dome was cast into a warm, exciting darkness, the audience fell into an expectant silence.

"Ladies and gentleman! Fish of all ages!" Vexen the merman cried from the stage, voice amplified from the large, hollow shell that belonged to an irritable hermit crab. "May I present… King Xemnas!"

Dolphins tugged a golden carriage through the emerald curtains that accented the stage, whipping them up in such a dramatic fashion that there was an explosive sigh as the entire audience caught their breath. Xemnas sat within it, waving haughtily as the carriage manoeuvred around the dome, dolphins squealing, the crowd cheering fit to burst the sound barrier. Eventually, once the King was satisfied with the amount of propaganda and kingdom-loving he had been spreading, the carriage was pulled to the royal observation box. Xemnas neatly departed and sat within it smugly.

Once the crowd had settled again, the entertainment began to commence. The group of instrumentalists were gathered at the far left of the stage, and the vocalists were arranged in a solemn line at the centre. The entourage of fish (and other ocean life) waited breathlessly for the music to start.

Soft, gentle notes began to float through the water as the creatures and mermaids began to play their instruments: strings were carefully plucked, drums were confidently tapped and life crept into the horns as the musicians breathed into the tubes. The group of vocalists floated patiently, solemn smiles painted on their lips, arms crossed behind their backs, tails swaying to and fro in time to the music. A few moments later, they began to sing in perfect harmony, each voice synchronising with each other, as if every single person in the group had combined their souls with one another, melding into something supernaturally beautiful.

The curtains behind the vocalists rippled more vigorously than the usual flow of water allowed them to, and a merman burst through them so dramatically he instantly stole the attention of the entire audience. Demyx paused to smile and then swam to his position in the dome, sitar slung over his shoulder. He waited for his cue, and then began to play his instrument with expert fingers, his voice also floating in amongst those of the other vocalists. Without a doubt, Demyx could commandeer a show. The group of instrumentalists and the other singing mermaids didn't even need to be there to keep the audience satisfied. And, worst of all, he didn't even have to try.

* * *

"Heh heh, guess who's gonna be all grown up tomorrow?" Axel grinned, wrapping his arms around Zexion's neck from behind in a playful manner, and squeezing so tight it seemed that he was aspiring to be a Boa Constrictor in the near future.

"Well, I suppose you're referring to me," the prince replied irritably, not looking up from the book he was reading. "But, knowing you, I'm sure that you must be talking about someone else and you're grabbing me just for the fun of confusing me."

"Eh, what?" The redhead cocked his head to the side, confused, but withdrew his arms from Zexion's neck all the same. "Well, I was talking about you, if you must know. Besides, I'm your manservant, I'm not allowed to be cheeky."

"You're cheeky anyway," said Zexion. He snapped his book shut and shook his head lightly in irritation. "God, I can't wait to get off this Satanic boat. I hate being out at sea."

"Lex said we'd be back at Radiant Garden by the morning after tomorrow," Axel crossed his arms at the back of his head and paced the deck to try and calm down. The prince was a good friend of his, but he was so trying sometimes, especially when he was peeved off. He smirked, and whipped round to face Zexion. "You know, you shouldn't be sitting there all haughty and dissing the sea, Zexy. We wouldn't want old Xemnas to hear…"

Zexion sat up, interested. "Xemnas, who's that?"

"Aw, you know…"

Irritated that the idiotic redhead was more knowledgeable in a certain area than he was, the prince stood up and eyed his manservant with his most disapproving glare. "No, I don't actually."

"Oh, he's just the king of the entire ocean… how can you not know that?" Axel couldn't suppress a grin as he watched the shorter man splutter with indignation. "EVERYONE knows about King Xemnas…"

"Quit it, Axel," Zexion said firmly, crossing his arms to show that he'd given up on being annoyed. "Just tell me about him."

"Well, apparently he has loads of sons, and a couple of daughters," Axel shrugged. "It's said that when it's really bad out at sea, it's because of him doing one of two things." He paused.

The prince stared up at his manservant expectantly, and tugged at his sleeve to get him to continue. Axel held up two fingers and said softly, "He's either punishing one of his kids for something or other, or he's beating the crap out of anyone who's ever laid a finger, or a bad word, on him or his family."

Zexion swallowed, but then shook his head blithely. "Don't be silly, Axel. Mermen and sea gods aren't real."

"If they're not real, then why are you getting so nervous?" Axel purred in his ear, before pushing himself across the deck and away, leaving the prince with his fretful musings.

* * *

"That was truly amazing, Demyx!" Namine squealed, grabbing her older brother and pulling him into a bone-crushing hug.

"Hey, leggo!" Demyx wheezed in reply, gently prising the teenage girl's hands off of him. She pulled away and muttered her apologies. "You were great too, Nam."

"Don't be modest… you know everyone only comes to our concerts to see you…"

Excited yells and cheers exploded through the backstage as an entourage of blonde mermen (and one grumpy mermaid) burst into view and all rushed to tackle-glomp Demyx at once. Screams of "You did bloody brilliant, mate!" and "Holy, super wows!" were flung at him from all directions, and this did not subside until the ominous presence of King Xemnas floated into view. The siblings fled sharply. The merman regarded his anxious son for a few agonising moments.

"Well done, Demyx," he said finally. "You performed well."

"T- thanks, dad."

"BUT if I see you even the slightest bit late for a concert ever again, I swear…" He broke off, anger and frustration evident in his blazing orange eyes. He raised a finger to his son's face and waved it with so much force it was likely that he could knock Demyx out if he wasn't careful. "It'll be the last concert you ever attend. Understand?"

Demyx breathed a ragged sigh, relieved that he was unlikely to be punished at this particular moment in time. "I understand. I'm really sorry, dad."

"Good," Xemnas' expression softened considerably, and he lowered his hand to his side. All seemed to be forgiven. "Well, I think it's about time for sleep," he said, and then swam away.

But, for Demyx, it really wasn't time for bed yet. When he was positive that he had been left completely alone, he swam to his dressing table, opened the drawer and fished out his prize from earlier: a long, thin silver piece of metal with a head at the top, cut into four sharp spikes. The merman was not sure what this object happened to be called or what it's purpose was, but he knew straight away that it didn't belong in the ocean, and, therefore, it was a treasure. He turned to the exit with a small smile, excited to be on his way to his Secret Place, and with a kick of his tail, he was off.

Little did he know that, as he swam swiftly through the palace's reef, that he had someone following quietly behind him.

* * *

I'm not too happy with this chapter, I just can't wait to get tot all the fluffy Zemyx bits! -squee-


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** No matter how much I beg, or plead or cry, I will never own Kingdom Hearts. D:

Been a while since the last update, sorry about that! But, since it's Zemyx day I thought I'd better get moving and finish this chapter. For your enjoyment, it's a bit longer. Hope you enjoy! :D

* * *

Demyx's secret cave was one of the few places that he could ever feel at peace with himself. The water was cooler here, and incredibly soothing, and as Demyx curled up on the rock situated in the centre of the circular grotto, he knew that no one would disturb him from his musings. He only wished that he could bring his sitar here so that he could practise his music, or compose a new song, but he was bright enough to know that dragging the hefty instrument along with him would certainly arouse someone's attention. The best thing of all, however, was his extensive collection of objects from the human world that littered the shelves all around the room, and stretching far up, almost reaching the surface. They appeared in every shape and form, from necklaces to drinking cups, all of them beautiful, all of them deeply fascinating in their own, special way.

Demyx held up his new prize up above his head, examining it with a small smile of delight; granted, it was not one of his most exciting possessions, and probably not worth losing an arm over, but it was still amazing.

"I wonder what it's for…" he wondered aloud, tilting it back and around so that he could get a better look at it. Gingerly, he poked the spines of the object upon the flesh of his arm. He winced slightly. It was kind of sharp.

The rumbling of the boulder being shifted from its usual resting place disturbed him from his thoughts; he jumped up quickly, tossing the silver 'weapon' lightly to the side, desperate to get rid of the intruder.

"Demyx are you in there?"

He stayed silent, hoping that his follower would leave after a few moments of waiting.

"It's me, Roxas! Let me in," Roxas pleaded, thumping pathetically on the boulder's outer edge. "If you've got something to hide in there, I promise I won't tell dad."

There was a long pause, before Demyx opened up the cave's entrance and pulled his brother inside: if there was one person he could ever trust in the whole sea, it was Roxas.

"Wow," the young blonde breathed, prising his wrist free from Demyx's grip and swimming up amongst the collection of human paraphernalia, so astonished his mature cerulean eyes were as wide as the moon. "_Wow_," he repeated. "So this is where you disappear to.."

"Please Roxas, you can't tell anyone…" Demyx begged whilst retrieving the fork from the seabed. "Not even Namine."

Roxas dismissed him with the wave of a hand, distracted by his older brother's vast collection. "How long has this been here?"

"A while… Roxas, please-"

"I'm not stupid, Demyx. I won't say a word to anyone."

The older mermaid's green eyes softened, "Thanks."

"No problem," his brother smiled, his interest focused on a small wooden music box; he opened it warily, and watched the tiny ornamental woman slowly rotate on the spot, fascinated, whilst jolting in surprise as the gentle, chiming music filled the cavern unexpectedly.

"That's one of my favourites," Demyx confided, fiddling with the fork. He then lowered his head, blushing slightly. "I've always wished that I could meet the person who made it…"

"Yeah, you'd never get something like this made by any of the merfolk," Roxas replied, oblivious to what his brother was implying.

"I wish that I could just go up to him, and say, 'Hey, well done'. Maybe I could even make one myself," the blonde laughed a little, the bitterness barely noticeable, yet Roxas finally caught on.

"What's wrong, Dem?" He asked, swimming to his brother's side and patting his back gently.

"There's nothing wrong…"

"There is, you've got that pouty face on," Roxas frowned; it unnerved him whenever the usually cheerful Demyx showed his more moodier side, which normally indicated something was seriously bothering him.

The dirty blonde buried his head in his arms, sighing, before he mumbled, "I wish I could live up where the people are. I don't want to be here anymore… I'm trapped, it's boring and everyone's _suffocating_ me. I can't take it anymore."

The younger of the two tried to reason with him, comfort him, talk to him, but it seemed like Demyx had had enough, refusing to show any sign that he was aware of Roxas' presence. After a while, once Demyx had shot him a powerful look that spoke volumes, before curling up on his rock to sulk, Roxas felt it was time for him to leave, and so swam back to the castle alone.

* * *

The air in the cabin was cool and moist, an indication that today was going to be a humid one. Zexion was pleased, he preferred this type of weather to the baking heat that usually cooked the ship and its sailors, which tended to cause irritability, sweating and seasickness, a series of issues that he would have liked to do without on his birthday.

He was eighteen today. Not particularly an age Zexion would have considered to be 'all grown up', as Axel called it, yet it was one of those age related milestones that everyone in the world anticipated with excitement. As far as he was concerned, today was just another day, save for the fact that he was allowed to drink alcohol legally. And even that wasn't a big deal.

There was a series of sharp knocks on his door, presumably from Axel, and he permitted his entry with a sharp "Come in", his voice still croaky from sleep. The door was pushed open and Axel stepped in, bending slightly as his lanky figure passed the door frame.

"Good morning birthday boy!" He grinned wickedly and drew the curtains; Zexion winced at the alien flash of light that pulsated into his sleeping quarters, shielding his delicate blue eyes from the morning sun's glare. "Sleep well?" He added cheerily.

"Why do you have to be such a morning person?" The prince moaned, tugging the crisp, grey duvet back over his head and snuggling in deeper.

"Why do you have to be so lazy?" Axel chirped in retort, but he brandished a mug of steaming coffee as a peace offering. The smell instantly caught the attention of the slate-haired teen, he emerged and begrudgingly accepted the drink, eager for its heavenly stimulants to do their magic. "Good?"

"It's a little bitter."

There was a period of silence between them, Zexion was staring into his coffee as if was expecting Dracula to pop out of the brown, caffeinated depths, and occasionally taking tentative sips; Axel was watching him, unsure of what to say to his friend, who seemed to be in a delicate state of mind right now, thus he had to proceed with caution.

"Do you want to see your present?"

"I suppose."

"Come on then," Axel rose to his feet, watching the prince slowly lower his mug on to the bedside table, wriggle out of bed and poke his head into the wardrobe in search for some fresh clothing. Once dressed and feeling sufficiently clean, Zexion followed his manservant out to the deck, where something unspeakably large, covered by a blue cloth, was waiting for him. A deck hand by the name of Sora was quivering excitedly beside it, he gripped the blanket, sang 'Happy Birthday' to the prince (who always found this aspect of his birthday a little embarrassing) and then yanked it off to reveal a statue.

The statue was built of marble, and was modelled after Zexion himself. It was incredibly detailed, especially the eyes and his facial structure, which were on the verge of becoming lifelike. There was even a thin smile upon his features, his hair was delicately covering the right side of his face and he stood straight, poised and cool. He was holding a book. The only problem that the prince could detect on the supposed 'actual size' statue was that it was shorter than him by a few inches.

"It was just a joke," Axel grinned, scratching the back of his head nervously. "Besides, it was the castle sculptor who did it, not any of us."

"I bet you suggested it though," Zexion glowered, and then turned back to his gift, a little surprised. "How did you manage to hide this?"

"We kept it in the food store," Sora chirped. Axel threw the blanket over him to keep him quiet.

"What he means is… we were looking after it in the crew's sleeping quarters. Anyway, do you like it?"

"Yes, it's very pleasant," Zexion nodded at it, biting back the urge to tell him that this wasn't the practical gift a modest man like himself was hoping for.

Axel sighed in relief, then smirked wickedly, "Why don't you just go to your room and relax, my princeliness and we'll set up your wonderful birthday party?"

"Whatever," said the prince, as he retired to his bed to read. "Just bring me some breakfast."

* * *

"Vexen, I'm worried about Demyx," King Xemnas confided anxiously to his royal advisor later that evening, as he sat, sulking as per usual, in his throne room. "I haven't seen him since the concert, and he's always swimming off to somewhere or another. He's rarely in the castle anymore."

Vexen nodded appreciatively, "He is getting older now, sire."

"Yes, but most of my children are older than him, and they've never acted like this."

"You should get someone to follow him," Vexen suggested, his tail swishing impatiently, eager to escape the king's scrutinising gaze. "Keep him in check."

"Good idea, Vexen!" Xemnas almost laughed, after a moment's pondering. "Go find him and tail him for the next few days. Hopefully he'll stay out of trouble."

"But, your highness, I never meant-"

"What are you waiting for?" The king examined the lesser mermaid coldly, and then pointed his glowing red trident at him as if to threaten him. "Go!"

"Yes, your majesty!" Vexen shrieked, swimming as fast as he dared away from Xemnas, his heart pounding ten to the dozen.

Whilst he muttered to himself about how he was so blatantly disrespected by all of the sea life he happened to encounter, Vexen noticed a dirty blonde, green tailed mermaid swimming cautiously out of the castle grounds: Demyx. Seizing his chance, the middle aged merman silently commenced his reconnaissance.

* * *

The dark sky exploded with colour, raining down beautiful reds, violets, greens, blues after each separate gunshot sent a tremor through the air. Zexion covered his ears with aching arms, bewildered by the shockingly loud noises, his hair drenched from the steady curtain of rain cascading from the clouds. He pondered how Axel had managed to even light the fireworks in this downpour, but then again, when it came to fire, the redhead could achieve anything.

"Are you loving your party?" He asked, bopping the prince to the side with his oddly feminine hips. He was feigning perkiness: Axel had almost zero tolerance for wet conditions.

"The weather could have been better," Zexion remarked coolly. "But aside from that it's very nice. I'm happy you all put so much effort into it." He turned, a small, amused smile on his lips, "Sora looks like he's enjoying himself."

The young brunette was dancing wildly to the music blaring from the record player (kept safe beneath a canopy) and yowling along to the lyrics, accompanied by another deckhand, Tidus, who had grabbed his hand and pulled him into a waltz. A strong wave kicked the boat, knocking the whole crew off balance and sending them careering to the damp floorboards of the ship. Sora and Tidus resulted in an untidy heap on the ground, tangled together, and laughing hysterically.

Lexaeus, the captain, was having difficulty maintaining control.

A larger wave struck this time, forcing the statue to slide down to the left of the boat, practically leaning off the edge, threatening to fall. The prince, too proud to let his gift become a wasted relic beneath the ocean, started towards it.

"Zexion, for god's sake get away from the side!" Axel screamed, whilst the crew busily attempted to keep the ship from certain destruction.

It was too little, too late. Just as the prince turned around to follow his manservant's instruction, another wave jolted the ship's sense of balance. He went head over heels over the ship's barrier, along with his statue, and fell deep into the icy, dark depths of the ocean. And he couldn't swim.

* * *

And the next chapter is certainly going to be one of my favourites! :D

I love people who review. x3


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or The Little Mermaid. But if I did, I would be rich. o.O**

**Um, not as long as chapter three but it just seemed like a good way to end the chapter. I just had this feeling, yanno? xDD**

**Enjoy! And please review, it'll make me very happy. **

**And definitely no updates for two weeks, I'm going on holiday on Sunday, and I'll be restarting school really close afterwards. I'll try writing some of it by hand when I'm away. (:**

* * *

Feeling claustrophobic within the small cave, his racing thoughts battering at his consciousness with little compassion for his delicate frame of mind, Demyx just had to get away. Away from the cave, away from the palace, away from Atlantica. Swimming forever and ever seemed the most pleasing, calming option for the young, troubled merman, allowing him to blow off the steam that had accumulated over the years.

And so he went, carefully at first (avoiding unwanted attention from the nosy sea life who were sure to alert his father) and then slowly increasing in speed as he furthered the distance between his home and himself. Of course, he had not once thought about the prospect that Vexen could be following him.

Demyx was a good few miles from Atlantica when he noticed a dramatic change in the water. The waves overhead were choppy, dangerous, also making the depths more unsuitable to swim through, even for experienced swimmers like himself.

The blonde eyed the surface warily, deducing that the weather must be pretty bad up there, and throwing away any thoughts of going to check it out: He had been told by a crab that when the waves were shifting far too often, enormous jellyfish resting in the dark sky would sting those who were wet and curious. Demyx was not one to take his chances.

He was about to turn back, abandon his rebellion, and swim to the safety of his room, but there was a strange sort of something at the surface a good fifty metres away, and he couldn't just ignore it… Upon further inspection, he saw that the objects dangling into the water happened to be legs. And legs must belong to… a human?

Ignoring the jellyfish story, Demyx broke the surface and laid eyes on his very first human. A man, (he suspected) with a long grey-blue fringe that stuck to the right side of his face like plaster, obscuring one eye, the other was shut. He had fortunately kept himself adrift by clinging on to a large portion of drift wood, yet it would hardly keep him alive forever. The poor thing was drenched, and shivering, unconscious, gentle ragged breaths passing from his blue lips at irregular intervals.

Aware that if he didn't take the human to safety immediately, there was little hope of him surviving, and so Demyx carefully wrapped his arms around the sleeping figure and his raft, so he wouldn't fall off, and swam in the direction of land.

After what had seemed a lifetime of swimming, a beach appeared on the horizon, grey and uninviting from the storm. Gently, Demyx lowered the human on to the sand, pushing him out of range from the creeping tide, and removed the mass of wet hair from his face, tucking it behind his ear.

He was so _beautiful_.

He shuffled closer, his tail making it an awkward affair, yet it was worth it for a closer look. Unable to stop himself, he reached out a hand, caressed the human's cheek, and felt a shiver tumble down his spine at the cold, yet invigorating touch.

He was too beautiful to be part of the sea. More beautiful than anything you could find in the sea.

Somewhere in the sky, the thinning grey clouds parted, granting sanctuary to the bright gaze of the dawn, casting light upon the human's round, soft face and Demyx swallowed, feeling his infatuation grow and grow at every second he was caught staring.

"What would I give, to live where you are," he sang softly, playing with the human's damp hair. "What would I pay to stay here beside you?" He wove their fingers together, gently connecting their hands. "What would I do to see you smiling at me?" He pressed a tender kiss upon his forehead.

The slate-haired teen's lashes flickered, his little finger twitched absently, his breathing became more even. "Where would we walk?" He could hear the ocean. "Where would we run?" Was he on a beach? "If we could stay all day in the sun…" Someone was singing to him. "Just you and me." And stroking his face. It felt really nice actually. "And I could be…" He raised his own hand, softly feeling for the one on his cheek. "Part of your world," he opened his eyes, slowly, charmed by the beautiful voice that seemed to be singing only for him, and looked into a beautiful long face with sparkling teal eyes that left him drowning, hopeless to ever surface again.

And then it was ruined.

"Zexion! Zexion!"

There was an almighty splash, and Zexion propped himself up wearily on to his elbows, blinking in the harsh orange light of the dawn. Flat feet pounded against sand, and there was a hefty sigh of relief before Axel swiftly knelt down beside him and pulled him into a desperate, bony embrace.

"Jesus Christ, you're okay," the redhead breathed. "When you fell off the boat we thought you were a goner for sure."

"He saved me," whispered Zexion. "Some guy… he had such a beautiful voice…" He looked about dreamily, only to be disappointed.

"Okay, whatever," Axel rolled his eyes, hoisted the prince to his feet. "Let's get you home, buddy. Haha, I bet you'll get the monster of all colds after this, huh?"

Exhausted, Zexion collapsed onto his friend, who then mumbled complaints about how he was far too skinny for this kind of labour, but due to his lack of authority, carried him anyway.

Vexen had been positioned behind a rock, observing the scene in horror. As soon as he'd been given the chance, he grabbed Demyx's wrist so tight it could leave the most painful of marks, and pulled him into a nearby, secluded cove.

"I saw that," he said instantly. Demyx yelped in reply and tried to escape again. "How could you be such a little idiot? After everything your father's done for you, you repay him with _this_? Going after humans! That little stash you've got back in Atlantica is bad enough, but this is going way too far! This ridiculous behaviour needs to stop, right here, right now."

Demyx wrestled his wrist free once again, pouting, and after a minute's silence, said: "Are you going to tell my dad?"

"Of course not," Vexen folded his arms, irritable. "If he hears about this, he will scream at me for not stopping you sooner, and it'll be off with _my_ head, instead of yours, even though you clearly deserve it. We'll keep this to ourselves, understand?"

The younger merman nodded eagerly, "Thanks."

"Don't be silly, I'm doing this for me, not you."

"Okay," Demyx grinned, resisting the urge to wrap his arms around his uppity elder and squeeze him until his eyes bugged out of their sockets, due to the overwhelming gratitude he felt for him right now. Instead, they made their way back to Atlantica, preparing themselves for the brutal scolding they'd both be receiving from Xemnas upon arrival, whilst Demyx dreamed of Zexion's gorgeous blue eyes.

* * *

"Oh, he's such a pretty, pretty boy," Marluxia cooed, his cobalt gaze fixed upon the swirling image projected into his magical cauldron.

"Who?" Larxene sneered. "Demyx or _Vexen_?"

The merman ignored the jibe, although the insult to his taste stung sharp somewhere in the pancreas area, and he rubbed it absent-mindedly. "Apparently Demyx is Xemnas' secret favourite child," he added. "But he does get himself into all sorts of trouble, doesn't he?"

"If you're planning on snitching on the brat to Xemnas to gain his trust then I will stab you and leave you to die right now," said Larxene, brandishing her kunai and swiping them at Marluxia's sea anemone farm to prove her point. At once, he emitted a scream of outrage and swam to their aid, creating a barrier between the savage and himself.

"You can kill me, Larxene, but touching my precious sea anemones is a matter of the most extreme, and if you _do_, I will bring you down with me, if not before me. Understand?"

The scythe pointed at her throat was enough for Larxene to nod and giggle in reply, and swear she wouldn't harm the plants in any way possible, and to make mock bowing gestures to show that _he_ was the boss. Of course, behind her back, she had her fingers crossed., and still giggling at his paranoid expense, asked, "So, Master, Lord-of-the-Sea-to-be… what's your plan?"

Marluxia smirked, fondly tending to his plants and cutting away some of the leaves to be used in one of his recipes some day. "Why, Larx, how can you be so simple? We're going to use good old fashioned blackmail on poor old Xemnas." He jerked a thumb at the cauldron, where the picture of Demyx shimmered and twitched, and offered her a wry nod. "He's so fond of the human world, I'd bet he'd do _anything _to trade his tail for a pair of legs. And if something just happens to go wrong, well, daddy will have to come to his rescue, won't he?"

"True, true," she agreed, cackling again. "Let's make the details disgustingly brutal Marls, I want him to truly regret the day he kicked us out of his precious little Atlantica."

"I'm sure he already does," Marluxia pursed his lips, patted his wavy pink hair, with little effect, and rested a hand upon his hip. "Undoubtedly, we were the most sophisticated people there. He misses the grace and charm we added to the society, but…" and then he scowled, furious. "It's too late for forgiveness now, Xemnas. I don't give anyone second chances."

The illusion then faded away, the image of the travelling mermen gone, dissolved into an ominous swirl of red and black.


End file.
